Partners in the New York Times: No College Kid Needs a Water Park To Study

Partners in the New York Times: No College Kid Needs a Water Park To Study

Partners board member, James Koch, makes the case for greater transparency in setting tuition and fees in today’s New York Times. In the piece, Koch reflects on his experience as a university president, where he witnessed practices by public university leaders to co-opt their board of trustee members to raise costs for students without a question. As the governing board of an institution, trustees have the responsibility of approving tuition and fees--so as they say, “the buck stops here.”

Koch’s point is that the fiduciary duty of a trustee is to represent the state’s citizens and the students. Unfortunately, too often trustees, under the influence of institutional leaders as Koch describes, do not focus on affordability and the effect of rising student costs (and the corresponding increased debt) on the state’s future. Trustees have a responsibility to closely examine student costs and how any proposed increase will lead to outcomes for students and the public. In order to meet their fiduciary duty to the public, trustees and the governors that appoint them, must engage with students, parents, and the citizens of the state to create a revenue model that can produce a quality education at an affordable cost.